


The Dragon becomes Us

by Caliginous_Confused



Series: The Dragon becomes us [1]
Category: Overwatch (Video Game)
Genre: Character Death at the end, Drug Use (Past), Genji and Hanzo are brothers again, Hanzo had some very unhealthy coping mechanisms, M/M, Mentions of Talon, Redemption, Shimada Clan, alcoholism (past), genji being a little shit, hurt comfort
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-05-17
Updated: 2017-07-23
Packaged: 2018-11-01 12:48:37
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death
Chapters: 4
Words: 20,429
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/10922133
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Caliginous_Confused/pseuds/Caliginous_Confused
Summary: There weren’t many things that were certain in life. The one thing he was sure about was that he, Genji Shimada, was happy with his life. Granted, most of it hinged on the fact he had used guilt on his own brother to convince the older Shimada to join the Overwatch after the recall went out as a means to make something of his life and amends for past actions. It also didn’t help, there was a time where Hanzo didn’t believe that Genji was his Genji. But the cyborg ninja was undeterred, and used what he knew about his brother to convince him that the Genji that stood before him was the same one from his past. A certain phrase was honestly all that it took to get his brother to take him seriously and agree to come with him. There were still some issues they were working out, no one was perfect after all, but Genji wouldn’t trade anything for this rekindled relationship he had with his brother.





	1. Chapter 1

**Chapter 1**

**_Hanamura – 25 years ago_ **

“We need a phrase that only we know so that if we ever suspect one of us is evil, or not really us it can be used as a legitimacy test,” Genji said as he laid against his brother’s leg staring at the clouds through the parts within the leaves. Hanzo closed his book and turned to look at his younger brother, said person turning to look at him past his elbow.

“You have a point; Father has said we are going to be on missions more often. It would be relieving to know that you are truly my foolish brother,” he responded with a small smirk on his lips.

 _“Aniki!”_ Genji whined as he sat up and pushed his shoulder lightly. “I am not foolish, I just know to have fun. I am not the one spending our day off from training reading about ancient military strategy that no one uses anymore.” He gestured to the thick book Hanzo was just reading from. “Your mind needs a break just as much as your body does.”

“You mind does it for me.” He chuckled a little before turning to face his brother. His voice showed that he was happy to be with his brother, happy to share tender moments like this. It made all of the extra work he put into the clan so Genji could have fun worth it. “What did you have in mind?” The sun felt nice on his skin, the warmth that it brought relaxed the normally tense muscles. Cherry blossoms were starting to fall from the trees, the weather was warming slowly but surely. His hair was blowing slightly in the wind, Genji’s waving slightly, though with all the product the younger put in his hair it didn’t surprise him that it didn’t move much.

“Well, when you summon your dragons,” He said emphasizing the plurality of the fact he had two dragons to his name, “you say ‘Let the Dragon Consume You.’” His voice dropped to emphasize the deep growl that the other used to summon them, puffing his chest out as he drew from a bow made out of thin air.

Hanzo looked at the ground for a second, then lightly ran his hand over the tattoo that decorated his left arm. Dragons, plural. Two dragons were crawling under his skin, sharpening his instincts. The Clan Elders said that Hanzo was destined for great things. That him having two dragons was going to bring great wealth to the already wealthy clan, that their power was going to reach far and wide. The business that the family had been a part of for generations was going to be taken to the next level at the hands of the elder brother.

“Hey, I am kidding about the jealousy thing,” Genji said gently when he saw how Hanzo was reacting, leaning over and lightly putting his hand over Hanzo’s. “Two dragons, big fucking deal. We all have one, you just have another mythical beast crawling under your skin and to be honest one is weird enough.”

“It is not that it’s…”

“I know…” Genji nodded and squeezed his hand as he nodded slightly and stared at the grass in front of him. “You don’t think I can’t see how the elders look at us? They look at you like you’re some trophy, that you are some hot-shot when you’re still a kid, and me…they look at me like I am dirt. I know they don’t like how I spend most of my time at Rikimaru. But, eh fuck ‘em. We never signed up to be some yakuza Hanzo. If you don’t want to do it, just don’t.”

“That won’t work. I tried, remember? They pulled my rope tighter than yours, and they always do when I don’t do what is best for the clan.” Most of the threats they made were in regard to Genji. If he didn’t do what they wanted him to, then they would make Genji’s life harder, taking away the things that Genji loved about Hanamura slowly but surely, Genji’s happiness was more important than his own. The clan needed an heir and they chose Hanzo. It was no secret that Genji hated the clan and its business. If he could give him an out, it would be worth it.

“Yeah…well…” Genji shrugged and reached to squeeze Hanzo’s shoulder and offered him a smile. “Next week let’s go to the arcade, like we used to before they got to be hardasses alright? Dad’s still alive so they can’t do much.”

“You say that like his days are numbered,” Hanzo teased trying to lighten the mood.

“I mean, everyone dies Aniki. We just cause a lot of those deaths.” He pressed his lips together for a beat, as if giving a moment of silence for those that died at the hands of the clan. “Anyways, as I was saying you say ‘Let the Dragon Consume You,’ when you summon your dragons, and I say ‘The Dragon Becomes Me.’ So, I was thinking our Brother Validity Phrase be something like ‘The dragon becomes us as it consumes our enemies.’ What do ya think?” Hanzo laughed and shook his head.

“It sounds ridiculous,” He said once Genji laughed with him. He felt the dragons under his arm stir, as if they knew something he didn’t. He looked at this arm as a continuation of the phrase echoed through his mind. “’As long as the dragons of the North and South stand strong,’” he added after a little thought. Genji repeated the phrase and then a wide smile spread across his face.

“Fuck yeah that sounds so cool!” The younger teenager bounced slightly before turning toward Hanzo and raised his hands for him to take. The elder Shimada did and together they repeated the phrase.

_The dragon becomes us and consumes our enemies as long as the dragons of the North and South stand strong._

\---

**_Present Day_ **

There weren’t many things that were certain in life. The one thing he was sure about was that he, Genji Shimada, was happy with his life. Granted, most of it hinged on the fact he had used guilt on his own brother to convince the older Shimada to join the Overwatch after the recall went out to make something of his life and amends for past actions. It also didn’t help, there was a time where Hanzo didn’t believe that Genji was _his_ Genji but was instead some cheap imposter. The cyborg ninja was undeterred, and used what he knew about his brother to convince him that the Genji that stood before him was the same one from his past. A certain phrase was honestly all that it took to get his brother to take him seriously and agree to come with him. There were still some issues they were working out, no one was perfect after all, but Genji wouldn’t trade anything for this rekindled relationship he had with his brother. 

As if ten years apart with Hanzo convinced that Genji was dead wasn’t enough stress to their relationship, being surrounded by people who knew the story only added to it. The former members of Overwatch understandably held Hanzo at arm’s length when he first arrived; and when he entered a room all conversation stopped, unless it was either Genji or Tracer who was the one talking. Tracer had always been a friendly person who believed the good of others, apparently Hanzo wasn’t above her optimistic views. The archer didn’t seem to let the distrust bother him, he continued about his business with his head held high and his shoulders back. A complete front of confidence exactly how he’d been taught. A front that Genji saw through with no problem. Despite his mouth being set almost perpetually in an emotionless scowl, his eyes are where all of his emotion was, and they were sad when he analyzed the distrustful looks people threw his way. The slight twitches in his brother’s jaw told even more. He was uncomfortable situation; he wanted to either make a stand to show that there was a bigger threat than him, or lay his regrets out in front of everyone. Neither happened, he simply always kept walking.

The brothers spent a lot of time mending their old relationship during the first few months since reuniting in Gibraltar. Hanzo preferred to stay locked in his room for a good portion of the day as to escape the cold judging stares that he felt followed him around. Most of the reaching out came from Genji after he realized how his brother coped with his mistake. The ninja found him on the roof one morning as the sun was peaking over the horizon and soundless sat down. He kept his gaze toward the rising sun as Hanzo slowly turned to look at his brother, his eyebrows slightly scrunched as he searched for a reason for Genji to even be there. He was almost positive that Genji was simply going to join him in what appeared to be meditation. Then, Genji took a slow breath in and just started explaining how he came to terms with what happened, and how he learned to accept himself. He told Hanzo about his adventures with Overwatch, how he met Jesse McCree and Gabriel Reyes through Blackwatch and how they were the ones who tore down the Shimada Empire before he’d was a full-fledged member of Overwatch. He talked about his anger, how it burned deep in his soul, how he was nothing but his anger for a long time, how he wanted to do unspeakable things to Hanzo because of what he had become. He talked about how his new body worked and what old habits had to have been changed in order for him to live. He talked about the trouble he had accepting himself. How, for a time, he almost dared to say he hated himself, being lost between being onmic and human. He talked about how Zenyatta helped him understand that it didn’t matter what he was, but who he was. He was Genji Shimada, and after reminding himself of who Genji Shimada really was, he was fine with the state of his being. He was alive, and if it wasn’t for Hanzo he’d be rotting in jail probably. Looking back, despite hating his decision, what Hanzo had done had given them both an out of the Shimada Empire which is something both brothers agreed was a good thing.

About a month after Genji told his story, Hanzo returned the favor. The archer walked in the training room to find Genji while he was training one afternoon. He leaned against a wall, arms crossed avoiding his gaze as he waited for Genji to finish sparring with the robot standing in the center of the room. Genji stopped and looked at Hanzo, tilting his head as he took off his visor and went to lean against the wall next to the elder. He took the water bottle from his brother, squirting it straight into his mouth as he caught his breath. As he was swallowing Hanzo simply started talking, just as unannounced as Genji had been. Whereas Genji’s story focused on self-discovery, Hanzo’s wasn’t as fulfilling. There was a lot of drinking and wallowing. There were weeks in which Hanzo couldn’t recall clearly because he was non-stop drunk. He didn’t know where he was at the time. All he knew was that he didn’t speak the native language. Thankfully when he hit rock bottom and ended up in the hospital because he passed out in the street of alcohol poisoning and overdosing on a number of drugs, the nurse that was there when he woke up spoke enough English to explain what had happened. After that there was an up and down cycle of rehab that he took on alone. He ended up with him doing mercenary work to keep his body active, giving him a reason to take care of his body and stop drinking, stop the drugs, stop the frivolous sleeping around, to forget the pain that was never going to end. It was either take care of himself, or die as a poor excuse of a man.

His tone of voice and sad expression showed Genji that the decade had worn heavily on the man. He knew that his brother saw himself as a failure, and was looking for anything to make up for what he had done to Genji. Even though he was grateful to have his brother by his side again, Genji could see that Hanzo was far from happy. The archer left the training room after five minutes of silence, his scowl more of a frown, his dark eyes weighed down in sin and sadness. If it had been anyone else, Genji might’ve followed, but Hanzo was someone who needed to be approached like an unfriendly cat, it was best to let him have his space. He still went to look for him before the end of the day however, pulling his brother into a much needed hug.

After they both shared their stories, things were less tense, they both felt closure on what happened. The explanation on why Hanzo acted, the family told him that Genji alone would ruin everything they stood for, and as the heir he couldn’t let that happen. They told him, that if he was truly a Shimada he would take care of his brother. Genji understood that from his perspective he had no choice, that if he hadn’t done what he did they both would be dead.

As for normal conversations, Genji started the them first, just telling Hanzo how his day went, making jokes about what the other members of Overwatch were doing. Hanzo invited Genji to the roof to watch the sunrise – he never really meditated, his soul was simply too heavy for such a task. He simply put on the front so people would leave him alone. Genji accepted with a smile on his face, and eventually he did help his brother achieve meditation, helping him start to let go of what was weighing him down.

They were starting to act like brothers again, light teasing in Japanese always colored the room when the two were present. It was never directed at anyone else, and when it did involve other people the two were decent enough to tease each other in English. When one was leaving the other on a mission, the one staying always saw the other off. They trained in the evenings together, typically hand-to-hand sparring.

It was slow, but six months after Hanzo had joined Overwatch, he felt that he had his bother back.

**\---**

While the brothers were slowly rekindling their relationship, Hanzo quickly found the shooting range, and to no one’s surprise and that’s where he spent most of his time. Shooting was a great way for him to calm his nerves. It was a simple motion of pulling and releasing, but it helped him let go of the pent-up feelings. It was also the place where he made his first friend with Overwatch.

 Jesse McCree walked in while Hanzo was shooting the same day he had told his brother everything he had done in the past decade. He could see from the archer’s stance something had happened, but he didn’t press. He merely walked up to the line, leaving a station empty between them as the two of them, and took turns shooting. Though a part of him wanted to shoot him for what he had done to Genji, he of all people understood what Hanzo was going through. He saw the distracted thoughts flying through the archer’s head as he shot, the cluster arrows that were normally so close they looked like one arrow were slightly spread.

“Sinners gotta stick together Shimada. We’re two peas in a pod,” he had said to Genji when they had first met, and these words were later repeated to Hanzo after they had started talking more. The two meeting in the shooting range wasn’t all that uncommon, and eventually McCree would give Hanzo a light compliment, telling him a risky shot he’d taken in the last mission was “a good-un” or something along those lines. That quickly escalated to competitions on who was more accurate between the two of them. Those competitions turned into jokes, and that resulted in them walking into the dining hall together, McCree laughing loudly and the smallest of smiles on the archer’s face.

As Hanzo was mending his relationship with his brother, he gained a friend. His first genuine one. McCree understood what it felt to put everything he had into a cause to right the wrongs of his past, knew how it weighed on man. Though at first, he hated the elder Shimada, he listened to him in the training room as he shared what he was comfortable, and told him of his own life. The archer would always pause his shooting to look at McCree, understanding firsthand how it felt to be a killer at such a young age. He understood how McCree felt now, that his childhood was wasted, and that he grew up too fast. They understood one another when no one else did.

After a few months of seeing the two hang out regularly in spaces that didn’t involve firearms, it didn’t surprise the younger Shimada at all when McCree found him in the TV room late one night, clearly having trouble sleeping and asking if he had a minute. It didn’t surprise him when the cowboy shuffled his feet and looked at his boots as if they were the most interesting thing in the world. It didn’t surprise him when he refused to look the younger Shimada in the face as he stumbled over his words as he asked if Hanzo was interested in dating, or if he would even be interested in McCree. Well, that was the meaning of his words, Jesse McCree was not one for subtly and he was honestly really bad at hiding his intentions.

Genji failed at hiding the wide smile on his face, unable to hide his excitement and joy that someone was interested in Hanzo. It was the biggest smile that anyone had seen Genji wear, and it caught McCree off guard. The cowboy raised an eyebrow and took a small step back, asking if Genji was alright. Granted, the last time anyone had seen Genji he wore the visor all the time there were no smiles to be seen. Now, he wore it only during missions, an effect of being accepting himself. He pushed up from his lounging position across the couch and beckoned McCree to sit with him.

 “Jesse,” Genji had said with a slight chuckle in his voice after Jesse had declined. “You make my brother happy even now in your friendship. If you’re wanting my help in seducing him into your arms all you had to do was ask. Not only are we good friends, but I am all for teasing my older brother and you just handed me an excellent opportunity.” There was a pause as the younger’s face went from mischievous to somber. He sighed and his shoulders fell as he looked at his arms. “I want him to be happy and I think you are a good man. For me, this is a win-win situation, and who knows I might make a quick buck teasing the two of you because, let’s face it if I was the one asking this question you’d try to do the same thing.” Jesse paused and stared at the robotic man, his eyes wide. He never thought he would get Genji’s support so easily. He technically didn’t say that Hanzo _wasn’t_ interested either so that was a positive. After a few moments Genji patted the cowboy on his shoulder as he walked out of the room. “I’ll talk with him.”

Hanzo was found on the roof that morning, same as he always was, staring at the horizon in deep thought and a scowl on his face. “ _Aniki_ , if you keep staring at the mountains like that, they might take offense and move away,” Genji teased fondly using the name he used to call Hanzo when they were children as he sat down next to him and followed his gaze outward. Hanzo did turn toward him and frowned slightly, still not appreciating the nickname, but the tolerance to it had improved. He wasn’t saying anything about it. “Is something on your mind brother? Perhaps I can help.” He made sure his voice was light and all mischief was off of his face as he crossed his legs and lightly folded his hands in his lap. Hanzo’s shoulders fell as he took a drink from the gourd to his side. Genji raised an eyebrow eyeing the device suspiciously. Hanzo caught his brother’s gaze, sighed, and rolled his eyes and let Genji smell its contents, water.

“I have changed my ways little brother.” There was a pause. “How does one identify flirting?” Genji had to hold in his laughter as he asked his brother to elaborate. Turns out, McCree had tried to flirt, was painfully obvious in his actions as well. Unfortunately, all romantic experiences Hanzo had been a part of were in the name of the Clan and had no idea how organic relationships worked. He didn’t understand why he felt the need to overanalyze everything he said to McCree, or why when the cowboy smiled he felt his heart in his chest, or why his face was warm when he tripped over his words. Hanzo was experiencing his first real crush he had the freedom to act on, and since his awkward teen years were spent being a defined criminal.

Operation Cowboy Bebop was in full effect.

Genji had never expected to be the one helping his older brother on romance, but he was eager to help, even if both members of this relationship were basically hopeless. His help was subtle to anyone else. It was mostly telling McCree about Hanzo and how to work him out of his shell. How to talk to him in a way that makes it seem like he is in control of the conversation making him more comfortable and more likely to reveal things about himself. That the easiest way to read the archer was to look into his eyes and nothing else. He told him that he enjoyed challenges but was actually emotional and would be brought to tears – not that he’d admit to it or even show it for that matter – from a good story. Hanzo loved stories and though he was hesitant to share his own, he was always eager to listen to other people’s stories and keep them close, guarding them like his own. On the other side of the relationship, Hanzo received basic tutorials of romance. How to recognize flirting, how to talk to McCree without worrying too much about how he was responding. How important breathing was, and how to read someone’s face while flirting, and what certain cues meant.

Genji was hoping for the best but expecting the worse. McCree’s attention was spotty at best, and Hanzo took notes on something that Genji had repeatedly told him wasn’t as straightforward as shooting an arrow, and then was followed by a “which is clearly something you aren’t either” to which Hanzo didn’t understand. He would admit it was fun watching them flirt and fail at picking up the very obvious cues from one another. He even went as far as starting a betting pool, which he won and bought a DDR machine with. He still had the highest score on all the challenging songs.

There was a fair share of questions for Genji when McCree and Hanzo first started being painfully obvious that they both liked one another. It was then he revealed he was the reason they had even gotten that far. All questions of whether he approved ended quickly. Then, Hana asked him jokingly if he was jealous. His answer was no. He would admit to himself that there was a longing to find someone like Hanzo had, but he wasn’t sure he was ready for such a commitment as he was still simply enjoying being alive. Living vicariously through his brother in ensuring that his relationship was a success was suiting him just fine for the time being. Hanzo was smiling the smile that reached his eyes and lit up his entire face. That’s all that mattered to Genji.

In the end, it was McCree who finally asked Hanzo out. Hanzo had saved McCree once again during battle. Unlike the other times where McCree would only be mildly concerned that he was overwhelmed, his arm had gotten shot and even though the mechanical arm was already long gone, losing feeling and use of it terrified him every time it happened. Once Hanzo saved him, he pulled the archer close and kissed him. Both had immediately turned red and McCree was the first to recover, promising the archer that he’d take him out once they got back to base.

It was eight months after Hanzo had joined Overwatch before he and Jesse McCree started dating.

\---  

Things were looking up for the Shimada brothers. They were both happy, for once in their lives. There was no overbearing pressure to be the head of some organization they had no choice in joining, and Hanzo finally was allowing himself to live by his own rules for the most part. He was happy to follow Overwatch’s rules however, there was no overbearing sense of obligation towering over him as he listened to Winston’s orders. Typically, missions were collaborative, and at the end of the day they were all a team.

The brothers both learned the meaning of family. It was more than just blood; it was the warm bond formed between a group of people. A lot of times it was the two of them with Jesse, Hana, Lúcio, and sometimes Tracer and everyone else who would want to join in, in the game room or TV room depending on what the group was in the mood for. The night would then be filled with bad jokes -mostly from McCree that left everyone, mostly Hanzo, sitting there staring at him because the joke was lost in translation, talks about how their latest missions went, who was about to leave next, and whatever else was happening in their lives at the time.

Once a week or so, more out of courtesy than anything the group minus Jesse and Hanzo would move to Hana’s room to stream while the two of them had time for themselves. Sometimes, the two would take themselves out of the equation, their expression leaving nothing to the imagination to what they were doing. It was a nice system, and when they were left alone, Jesse and Hanzo make breakfast the next morning, or let Hana take the couple on their stream where they did nothing but play embarrassing dating simulators. McCree loved them. Hanzo had to be carried out of the room the first time by Genji because some people shouldn’t learn Japanese curse words that way. She quickly learned that she should’ve warned him about what was going on before doing so.

Everyone could see that Jesse worshiped the ground Hanzo walked on and was also the sun in the archer’s eyes. Everyone supported the two of them in their relationship from day one. When they were finally in agreement that they should be as open as Hanzo felt comfortable with it – Jesse was more than eager to show Hanzo off as his boyfriend – there wasn’t a big fuss made of it, simply off-handed comments on how cute they were. Those who were closer to Jesse said that he was happier with Hanzo than they’d ever seen him. Hanzo was smiling again, laughing and even humming songs as he cooked. On the rare occasions when they showed affection publicly it seemed to flow naturally from both of them despite McCree being the one who initiated most of it. On missions they worked together seamlessly and no one had to wonder if they were after they were silent on their coms. Angela especially didn’t feel obligated to check in on Jesse every half hour, and wasn’t surprised when Hanzo came on saying that McCree did something stupid which was countered with McCree defending his actions. Angela normally agreed with Hanzo.  

Happiness seemed to only come in small doses however. This was something many members of Overwatch were too familiar with, and honestly no one was surprised when Winston called the meeting. Things were running a little too smoothly and something was bound to happen.

 Within a few months of McHanzo – Hana’s nickname for the duo – becoming an open thing in the base, there were reports coming in that the Shimada clan was making a comeback in Japan and were expanding into the greater Asian continent once again. The thing that took everything away from the brothers was now in a position to do it again. They wouldn’t stand for it, they had the allegiances and power to do something.

“They’re being funded by Talon,” Winston said during their team meeting that week. Hanzo and Genji looked at one another through the corner of their eyes. They knew more than anyone what would happen if this was left unchecked. Genji pushed up in his chair and pulled his legs from the table, uncrossing his arms as Hanzo leaned forward out of the arm Jesse had lazily thrown over his shoulder getting ready to reveal what they knew. “Shimada,” they both looked up hearing their name, “this is your family, what should we do?”

Attack.

That was their only option at that point. Letting them go unchecked would be irresponsible and dangerous, especially since it was probably no surprise that their old clan knew they were Overwatch affiliated. The Shimada Clan would turn their attention solely on Overwatch, attacking the members that the two of them had grown attached to. McCree, Hana, Lúcio, and Angela were the group who had the biggest targets on them. They wouldn’t just sit back and let those who helped them and took them in be attacked.

They didn’t lie to the Overwatch members when they explained that they basically stood no chance if they were even a fraction of how strong they were over a decade ago. They didn’t lie when they said that if they followed their advice and went to attack Hanamura, they were most likely going to be ordered to leave before the job was done. They didn’t lie when they said that it was going to get ugly, and no matter what kind of training they prescribed someone was going to get hurt, or worse they were going to come home to empty rooms.

Jesse summed up the sentiments of everyone quite well while they were making their decision: “I ain’t gonna just sit here and let them fuck over everything we’ve fought over.” Overwatch was very much like family for everyone around them. As close as everyone was, at the end of the day they each had a reason for joining Overwatch. They joined because they needed redemption, they joined because the world needed a hero, they joined because they wanted to better themselves and the world around them. Losing one would be devastating, but that is something that came with the job.

Still, the group agreed with the slight push the brothers made while they explained everything. They were going to go to Hanamura and try their hand at taking down the old criminal empire for the second time. They agreed that trying was better than not trying at all. They could always retreat if push came to shove. Worst case, there were empty rooms, best case there would be only one enemy to fight. Two enemy groups hunting for them would spread the members of Overwatch too far and wouldn’t last to hear what the UN had to say about them violating the PETRAS act.

The operation took three months of planning and training. Everyone agreed that the Shimada brothers should be in charge of everything they felt comfortable taking over. They played to their strengths. Genji spent his days in the training room with everyone, being more familiar with the group’s dynamics as a whole, running them through simulation after simulation of what to expect from the grunts of the clan. They were strong when they were with the clan, the brothers figured if they could beat the clan in its prime, they’d have a shot at fighting this weaker clan. There was also a mixture of old Blackwatch techniques after hearing from McCree that Talon was running those with their operations.

The elder brother was the one better at pouring over battle plans. Hanzo spent his time bent over the conference table going over multiple strategies to try to pick the best one for what they were trying to do. Entire floorplans were placed all over the walls as he outlines possible places of attack, waiting for Winston or Genji to drop in and ask them of how his plans would work given the dynamics of the group. He wasn’t completely ignorant of the group’s abilities; he had worked with them long enough. Still, the second opinion was more than welcome. His main goal was to set it up to where the main group of Overwatch had an easy time escaping should it come to that. When he got bored, Hanzo would take a break and pop into the training sessions, forcing the others to adapt their strategy against him.

“Hanzo and I are not going to be able to jump in,” Genji yelled from his perch at the top of the room within the rafters of the ceiling, arms crossed as Hanzo managed to easily take out Tracer of all people, and a few turrets. “We will be occupied with the family. You need to clear your mind and focus on what’s around you. Jesse has the idea.” There was a smile on the cyborg’s face as Hanzo’s chest was marked from a shot from the cowboy’s paint bullets.

“Nice shot,” Hanzo praised jumping down. He had a small smile as he looked at the paint on his chest, not even mad about the welt forming around it. He merely picked out the bits it left behind.

“Ain’t my first rodeo bein’ put against impossible odds,” he responded with a tip of his hat. He winked a little and turned toward the others, holding onto his belt after holstering the practice gun. “We’re goin’ ‘gainst criminals. Now I know y’all know what that’s like. But the best way to get to ‘em is to surprise ‘em. Lotta y’all relyin’ too much on these, and not these.” He pointed to his eyes and then his ears to indicate what he was talking about. “Arrows whistle, feet make scuffs. Recognize the sounds and use ‘em with your eyes. This is especially true when fightin’ the Shimadas. Senses gotta be extra acute.” Hanzo and Genji nodded in agreement as they got everyone to set up the simulation again.

They broke at lunch, and then Genji, Winston and Hanzo went to pour over what plans the archer had come up with during the morning. Once evening gave away to night, they left Hanzo once again, Jesse would typically come keep him company in the room, not really giving any input. This mostly consisted of Hanzo staring at what they had done while the sun out, making sure they were right in what they said was the expected reaction of the Shimada clan with Jesse laying on his arms looking at him.

The slight furrow of the archer’s brow made his angular features all the more beautiful. His cheekbones stood out more in the low light from the single light above their heads. His hair was down, being held out of his face by running his hand through it, stopping and holding the hair between his fingers. Some still laid over his shoulders. Jesse loved it despite the stress evident on the man’s face.

“Hey sweetheart?” Jesse asked pushing himself up and looked at Hanzo, moving to push some of his soft hair behind his ear. The archer looked up at the sharpshooter and hummed quietly. “It’s ‘bout two. Wanna go to bed?”

“Not particularly, but I have a feeling you aren’t going to take ‘no’ as an answer,” he responded pulling the pen he was holding between his teeth out to speak with a small smirk as Jesse smiled.

“You’re right! Let’s go!” With that Jesse stood up and picked the archer up and tossed him over his shoulder like a sack of potatoes. “It’s time for bed!” Hanzo didn’t fight, simply held himself up so he wasn’t laying against his back as Jesse walked into Hanzo’s bedroom. The archer smiled at him as he was sat on his bed. The cowboy kissed him gently before the two of them broke away from one another for a few seconds, changed into their PJ’s.

The room was sparsely decorated compared to McCree’s assortment of “souvenirs”. Which ended up being random odds and ends he’d pick up while traveling, and trash. There were a few pictures that McCree had taken of the two of them framed and set on the shelf above his desk. There was also a picture of Hanzo and Genji that bad been taken about a month ago. There was a stand over his dresser where he could hang his bow and quiver when he wasn’t using it, and a scroll on one of the walls that Genji had gotten him for his birthday. “Redemption and Honor.” There was also a small orchid beside his computer. 

Jesse laid on his side, lightly tracing Hanzo’s features, his hand barely touching his skin as he ran over the curve of the archer’s cheekbones. Hanzo was looking up at the cowboy with soft eyes, the moon outside reflecting in his eyes as they laid against one another making his eyes appear to be a lighter brown than they actually were.

They just fit together, Jesse and Hanzo. Everyone could see it.

When they kissed it always lingered, their souls seemed to sing together for the duration that they are connected. Fireworks, as cliché as it sounded, was how they felt when they kissed. Electricity passed through them and made them warm from the inside and out. Their skin tingled when they touch, even when brushing one’s fingers over the arms of the other their skin barely touching. Simply laying in bed together, lightly pressed against one another, was the most intimate feeling the two of them had ever felt. They had spent plenty of time staring at the stars just talking about anything and everything on the roof on nights that they both simply couldn’t sleep. When they did do something more intimate, the dubbed Dance With No Pants as McCree called it, nothing else existed in their worlds until the following morning. It was nothing but a blur of love and names moaned to any and all deities. Tender moments together like what they were currently doing were the best.

It wasn’t always this nice. Both suffered nightmares of their past haunting them still. When one woke, the other was close behind and immediately went through a grounding process with the other. There was a system and McCree’s serape had somehow ended to be Hanzo’s comfort object as much as it was McCree’s. The one who woke up would typically get all snuggled in the red cloth, and once they calmed down tender touches and kisses ensured that eventually melted into talking until either one of them fell asleep leading the other to follow, or the sun came up. On nights where the latter happened, they just talked. They talked about the nightmares, what happened that caused them. It was comforting, having someone who understood what the other was going through and wouldn’t judge them for it. They both wanted to repent for what they had done, and they were trying so hard. Sometimes so hard that it hurt when things didn’t go as planned. They understood one another. They wanted to help the other feel free of the sins that were weighing them down.

Arguments happened, mostly over risks taken on the field, neither of them would stand for the other risking themselves to save the other. It was a thing of mutual respect, if they were meant to die in the field, it was something they both felt was long overdue. So, it was an unsaid rule, no playing hero.

One time Jesse broke that rule and Hanzo wouldn't talk to him for a good three days after he had gotten out of the clinic on base. It was Genji who reminded McCree reminded him about the pact. McCree lost color as he practically tripped over his own feet as he ran to find Hanzo and hugged his boyfriend, was tossed over his shoulder and onto the floor. He simply laid on the ground blathering so quick his words tripped over themselves as he explained that Hanzo was the best thing that ever happened to McCree, that he loved him with all his heart. He explained how he was sorry he forgot about the pact that they had. He explained how he simply had reacted, that he simply loved Hanzo, sins and all, too much to just sit by and let him get shot. He told him that he couldn’t simply let the best thing that’s ever happened in his life go because of some silly agreement that was made based on pride, and how he’d rather be the one in Angela’s clinic rather than Hanzo. That night, was an especially good night spent moaning each other's names to anyone and everyone who was close enough to hear what happened behind closed doors.

“You doin’ okay?” McCree asked quietly after looking at Hanzo’s distant eyes. Since the report, the archer’s thoughts seemed to be everywhere. Jesse could see stress was getting to him, and he simply wanted to give him a gentle nudge that he wasn’t alone.

“I am,” Hanzo said stiffly with a small nod. He hid his worry, though it was clear in his eyes. He didn’t want anyone get hurt, and he didn’t like thinking about how things would change should they lose someone. Everyone was important to the archer, especially Jesse McCree, and that cowboy was the one he was worried about the most. He was just too reckless with his life. “There is a lot of stress, but this is something I have been expecting for a while.”

“Don’ mean that ya gotta go and make your grey hair wings greyer.” He moved one of his hands and played with the small tuffs of grey hair. Hanzo scoffed and shook his head.

“They aren’t changing Jesse. They are what they have been. If they are changing that’s simply the natural course of what my hair will do.”

“Ya don’t know that.” He raised his eyebrows teasingly as he moved his hands to hug him close, one hand moving to trace the lines of his tattoo.

The worry and stress melted off of the archer from the comforting touches. There was another unsaid understanding between the two of them. The devastation that could accompany the loss of the other. Simply thinking about it almost brought the archer to tears, but Jesse was there. Jesse would do anything to ensure that he would come back, and so did Hanzo. No playing hero, but protecting what the other held dear to ensure they both came back.

 The archer had no home, not until McCree pulled him into a hug, then his person, Jesse McCree became Hanzo’s home and he would do anything to protect it.

Hanzo let out a satisfied hum as he reached up and cupped Jesse’s face in his hand, a soft smile spreading across his face as the other leaned into the hand. Jesse’s hand moved to trace the light lines that came with the smile. This pulled the smile tighter on Hanzo’s face, turning it into a real smile, not just one he wore to comfort the other.

The cowboy’s face lit up at his smile. When Hanzo smiled, it was literally like everything was going to be fine regardless of what actually happened. All the problems the two faced were immediately remedied by the smallest of tugs at the corners of that man's mouth. The smile lit up Jesse’s life like no other, and his heart almost couldn’t handle the joy that small gesture brought him.

“ _Te amo Hanzo Shimada, mi coraz_ _ón,_ ” Jesse whispered his lips barely moving as pulled his lover close in order to run his nose into the crook of Hanzo’s neck, the archer tilting his head to the side so he could reach more of the skin. The cowboy hummed quietly as he lightly decorated the skin with small gentle delicate kisses. Everything was going to be fine. Hanzo smiled.

“ _Dai suki da yo McCree Jesse_ _,”_ Hanzo whispered back, the smile still on his face as he slowly eased the both of them down so that he was effectively laying on top of Jesse, hugging him close causing as a small chuckle escaped from the warm man under him. Jesse kissed along the man’s collarbone and snuggled close against him, chuckling again at the soft sounds of annoyance that came when he rubbed his stubble cheek over his chest.

"Aww come-on sweetheart, you told me ya don't mind the stubble," he teased lightly knowing that there was no bite behind the sounds.

"I don't," Hanzo confirmed his voice light, almost song-like. "I am simply annoyed that it tickles. It's almost past the annoying sharpness of stubble that I do hate." Jesse laughed lightly and looked up at Hanzo, his chin on the other’s chest.

"Should I shave?"

"You would look ridiculous without the scruff." Hanzo scratched the man's face as if to illustrate the point, and to wordlessly say that he'd miss it.

"Not all of it darlin’. Like give it a lil trim, get rid of the stubble and clean it up." Hanzo paused and looked his lover over, trying to decide if he'd appreciate Jesse with a cleaned up beard.

"May I do it?" He asked gently. “I promise that I won’t clean it up too much. You do have an image to keep up.” There was a chuckle from the man under him.

"If that's somethin' ya want to tackle sweetie. I ain’t gonna say no to havin’ your hands all over my face." McCree winked and Hanzo scoffed as he lightly blushed, thankfully past the stage where he hid his face. He was always a lot more handsome when he blushed.

"I think it would be fun," he said pausing. "Mostly because of your way of making everything enjoyable. Not the actual shaving part."  McCree laughed lightly.

"I know, you aren't a stick in the mud Hanzo. I love everythin' ‘bout you, even the things other don't appreciate everything that makes you so amazin' and perfect. I’ve told ya that like many times." Hanzo smirked and kissed him a little deeper than the other kisses up until that point.

Eventually they got situated to where Hanzo was laying on Jesse’s chest, letting the gentle beating of the grizzled man’s heart lull him to sleep, the other man letting the clear gently sent of the other wash over him to produce the same effect.

That night Hanzo did have a nightmare, it was bad. Upon waking, he almost attacked Jesse when he moved to calm him down. This wasn’t the first time, and thankfully the jolt from Hanzo sitting up sharply in a cold sweat, swearing loudly in Japanese woke the cowboy enough to where he could easily dodge incoming attacks. They didn’t fall back asleep, there were tears falling down the archer’s face as he babbled out apologies that had long sense been made. McCree held him close and nuzzled in his hair, whispering gently as he wrapped around him, listening to him recount that night with Genji once again.

“It’s alright darlin’ I’m here. If ya think it’ll help we can go talk to Genji t’morrow.”

“I know…you’re always here. I’d…I’ll talk with him. Thank-you.” Talking with Genji always helped; reminded him that he truly was forgiven once again.

“Always.” 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Te amo Hanzo Shimada, mi corazón - I love you Hanzo Shimada, my love (if my spanish is right, it's been a while)  
> Dai suki da yo McCree Jesse - I love you (like the soulmate kind of way) Jesse McCree. (If my research in the ways to say "I love you" in Japanese are correct). 
> 
> \---
> 
> So this is a little pet project that I have been working on for almost a year now. It has gone through many forms. Originally it was going to be a one-shot. Then it was 20k words, then I tried to write it all out, got writer's block. So, I decided to keep it as is, and just divide it up into chapters. It's already written, I just have to go through and edit everything. 
> 
> As for the Character Death, it wasn't originally intended to happen, while writing the first draft of this, my grandfather died, and killing someone off was how I coped with it. Since then, I have been thinking of writing an alternate ending to this where everyone lives, so if that's a thing you want to see let me know.


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The attack on the reformed Shimada clan doesn't go as planned.

The night of the mission was calm and clear. The moon was full, providing plenty of light for them to sneak through the streets of Hanamura. A light cool breeze was passing through the land. It was silent, so much so that the light flapping of the ribbons that were adorning the heads of both Shimada brothers were heard clearly as they stood on a nearby building looking over the property that they grew up in.  It was a night that was made for stargazing, and taking a walk to calm one’s racing mind. It was not a night for murder, and yet there they were.

Genji was standing with his arms crossed, his posture suggested that if he spoke his voice would be cold, and harsh. The gentle soul that everyone now knew to be Genji now would be replaced by the one that was saved from this place 11 years ago. Every minute or so he would move his wrist and check to make sure his shuriken arm was working properly. He tilted his head and inhaled, his shoulders falling as he relaxed some.

“Remember everyone, we are not Overwatch the Strike team, we’re assassins. Think more Blackwatch. We go in silently, and we come out silently only with a few less people breathing on the inside of course,” Genji said good naturedly, a light smile heard within his voice. It was more to keep the rest of the team calm. He was shifting his weight as he spoke, a nervous habit he always had. It was as if he was about to spring into action any second, dash in over the gates and disappear from sight without notice. “Reinhardt, that means you must internalize all the celebrations of your comrades until after we have completed our mission.”

“ _I shall do my best my ninja comrade!”_ the boisterous German responded cheerfully. Hanzo shook his head lightly as he watched a few patrols, knelt near the edge of one of the roofs, his elbows resting casually on his knees. His stomach churned slightly, something was making the dragon spirits within him restless. It wasn’t going to go as smoothly as they hoped.

“You do realize it’s not going to last right?” Hanzo asked casually turning to look at his brother for a second, trying to use the casual conversation to calm his nerves just as Genji was doing for everyone else. The cyborg turned sharply, as if he forgot Hanzo was there. The archer simply looked at his brother with a calm expression, his eyes not staying too long on the hand that was holding onto the _wakizashi_ that rest in the middle of his back. “Once he breaks down the wall and throws his shield up, he’s going to be laughing like… what is the saying Jesse uses?”

Whatever Hanzo felt, Genji felt it too. It was clear in his posture, and how jumpy he was.

The younger brother relaxed and closed his battle stance and chuckled lightly behind his visor as he responded, “Like a kid in a candy store? Yes, I realize, but they still must think like an assassin to beat them.” He had a point, Hanzo had to admit it. The mentality of what they were doing meant everything. If it wasn’t there they wouldn’t do well. They were doing good in training. It was time to see if it would all pay off. Hanzo stood up and pulled his bow from his back and gave a few test pulls on his bowstring before letting his eyes take another sweep of the area.

They were almost ready. He voiced the locations of a few patrols, their numbers and what they appeared to be holding. He relayed information on what paths they should take that had the most guards and will pull enough attention away from the path Genji and he would be taking to get to their family to confront them.

He pushed the uneasy feeling that was slowly consuming him as he adjusted the guard on his draw arm. Knowing that their eldest cousin was now the leader of the clan, was reassuring. The man was overconfident and was prone to mistakes. He was more brawn than anything, probably fought his way to be clan leader rather than listening to what the elders wanted. His dragon was just as brash, there was no class, no skill associated with them. It was easy to overwhelm him with a well-planned strategy which is what they had. Since they were focusing on countering old Shimada clan strategy, the brothers were confident anything the clan was going to do was going to be easily matched by Overwatch.

“ _Hanzo, ya there darlin’?”_ Jesse called over the communicator drawing the archer out of his thoughts.

“Yes, Jesse,” he said calmly doing his best to hide his unease.

“ _Take a deep breath babe. We got this. Don’ worry your pretty little head. We’re gonna go in, be that pretty distraction ya wanted. Tracer and I are gonna sneaky sneak ourselves around to get Talon info while you and Genji have arguably the_ worst _family reunion ever._ ”

“That is an understatement.” Hanzo chuckled and shook his head lightly. There was a hint that he wanted to say more. “Continue.”

“ _When we get back, how ‘bout you an’ me go on a vacation. Already asked Winston, an’ the big guy said yes.”_ Hanzo smiled and nodded once. On the other side of the compound, where the rest of the group was, with a cigarillo in his mouth. Jesse stood looking at a small box, smiling fondly at the contents inside. Angela was standing not too far off, smiling warmly toward him.

“I would like that Jesse.”

“ _Now, go kick your family’s ass. Stay safe.” (I love you.)_

“You too.” ( _I love you too.)_  Hanzo took a deep breath and played with the small cowboy charm on his bow, looking at it with apprehension. He didn’t hear his brother approaching as he jumped when his hand rested on his shoulder.

“Ready?” Genji asked quietly as Hanzo loaded an arrow and pulled the string back.

“Are you?” Hanzo asked with an eyebrow raised. He briefly turned toward his brother who nodded once as he put his hand back on the blade that rested in the middle of his back. Hanzo released the arrow, it was heard briefly whistling through the air.

“I was reborn ready for this it seems,” Genji said with a smile in his voice. Hanzo smiled and reached to grab a few more arrows, shooting them all off to start the battle each one finding their mark.

The first arrow flew over their old home into the courtyard where the rest of the group was going to fight. The scatter shot was heard bouncing around. The Japanese warning calls for intruders kicked the Overwatch assault off. The walls of the Hanamura estate were beaten down by Winston and Reintardt as one beat his chest in challenge and the other threw up his shield as predicted. Battle cry included and everything. Turrets Tobjӧrn had set up while they were getting ready all started shooting at once, catching some of the clan off guard.

The Shimada brothers went straight for the center of the castle going for the family in the highest room. They kept high on the rooftops of the estate, their feet silently tapping in comparison to the loud laugh from the east side where the rest of the team was. Reinhardt was laughing as predicted, challenging anyone and everyone to come take a swing at him.

They knew that the rest of their family was going to be in the center. That was the residential portion of the estate. It was normally heavily guarded, but with all of Overwatch, save for them, Jesse, Tracer, and Lucio running around on his skates relaying information where everything and everyone was, most of the small guard force was dealing with them.

 “Y’all come back in one piece,” Jesse said in the brief moment they were in the same courtyard, all three stopping for a moment. He tipped his hat toward the Shimada brothers. A warm smile passed between the three of them as the archer felt one of the dragons that resided in him try to move toward the cowboy. He pulled it back and made a promise that later they would continue work on getting McCree acquainted with the spirits. He was not ready to have one be with him to protect him at all times.

“As the same to you,” Hanzo responded, the two of them starting at one another. Another unsaid “I love you” said between them before Hanzo jumped off with his brother to the top of the estate. The main group was mostly to toy with the grunts, keep them occupied and take out who they could and those who look like they gave orders. They were to play it safe. The ones in real danger were the Shimada boys, they were finally facing their demons for the last time it seemed. The family wasn’t going to see tomorrow, that was the plan. Only two Shimadas will live.

“Let’s finish this,” Genji muttered as he put his hand on Hanzo’s shoulder, the archer turning toward his brother and doing the same thing.

“Once and for all,” Hanzo said all apprehensiveness disappearing his eyes turning predatory. Bile rose in his throat as he was reminded of everything he had gone through growing up. He was out for the blood that made him lose his childhood, that convinced him that killing his brother was a good idea. Little did they know, his brother was all that he had. They were finally going to feel the weight he had carried for ten long years at once.

The sounds of battle outside were muffled as the brothers walked side by side, one of Genji’s hands was on his _wakizashi_ in the middle of his back the other poised and ready to throw his shuriken’s at the first thing that moved. Hanzo was watching their back as the dragon stirred once again under his skin. A brief glance toward Genji proved that he felt it too. The dark, heavy feeling in the pit of their stomachs that something was going to go very wrong. Neither of them said anything, now was not the time to think about what could go wrong. They had an escape plan and if needed they will use it. They came too far to stop now.

They slowly opened the door that used to be their father’s office.

「Hanzo, Genji, how nice for the two of you to finally return home,」 came a song-like voice from in front of them. Their stances deepened, planting their feet as the familiar orange crest seen on the breasts of those they once valued as family. There were about ten members still alive and holding their allegiances with the fallen clan, using up whatever money they still owned.

「This is no longer our home Katsu,」 Genji said his voice hard as he tightened his hold on the _wakizashi_ , the metal clanking lightly within its sheath. Tension was heard in Stormbow’s string as Hanzo slowly pulled back an arrow and held his hand by his cheek.

「You would turn back on your family?」The man questioned raising his eyebrow, holding his arms out seemingly in surrender. His head lifted once he found an arrow pointing right at his face showing that there was no fear. He knew he had the upper hand. He knew that even the dragons would favor them in battle out of sheer numbers.

「Family doesn’t request the death of another of their own blood,」 Hanzo spat venomously fighting the aura from consuming his arm. Thin streams of what appeared to be lightening cracked near his face. He cursed inwardly at how tied to his emotions the dragons were. They must wait, he wouldn’t let emotion cause them from debuting prematurely. 「Family respects the differences of their members and celebrates what makes everyone unique, not demand obedience without question. It has taken me too long to realize this, and I will not let you go unpunished for what you’ve done!」 His voice rose as he spoke, unable to keep his emotions from the words. This wasn’t the time to be the groomed air of the Shimada clan. That wasn’t him.

He was Hanzo Shimada. He was passionate and caring, even though he wasn’t one to show it. He went out of his way to pull members aside and simply let them rant without judgment. He would never say anything unless he felt he could genuinely assist them with their problem. His laugh was soft, his smile was rare, but he wasn’t pouting. He was still hard to read, but compared to the hardened man he was while in the clan, this Hanzo was alive.

「Oh? And did the two of you learn this in Overwatch?」asked one of their aunts, spatting the name. There was a glance thrown at her from both sides, neither commenting. She spoke out of turn, and even though there was no indication, she would be reprimanded later. Hanzo tried his best to keep his face from softening in sympathy as she realized her mistake. Genji just slowly shook his head, a warning.

「You set my brother up so you could take control. All of you did, with this same motive. But you forget, the dragon doesn’t rest easy,」 Genji accused, his head turned slightly signifying that he was narrowing his eyes behind the visor that covered his face. 「However, you didn’t intend to see me again. What did Talon tell you that convinced you that I was still alive?」

「It took some time, but we saw you use the Dragons on one of their surveillance tapes. Only a Shimada can summon them, and Hanzo though is talented in the use, can only summon two and they are both blue.」 Neither brother bought this answer. Hanzo was probably the one most likely to believe Genji was really who he was, and there had to be some convincing when they first met. They probably figured what Hanzo did at first, that this Genji wasn’t the one they ordered to be killed but a copy of some sort.

「Genji don’t,」 Hanzo whispered quietly as his brother’s hand twitched, itching to go do his Dragonblade. The younger turned his head slowly toward his brother. Had they not spent the better part of a year reconciling, Hanzo would’ve been intimidated by the gesture and probably would’ve taken a step back. But the slight dip in the ninja’s head was all he needed. Hanzo turned his gaze back toward the clan. 「The two of us came to stop the family once and for all. The last time you had to face Overwatch my brother was generous and requested that the family remain untouched because he felt I was still affiliated with it and wanted to take it down slowly, letting us all bleed painfully. This time, we aren’t feeling so generous and will dismantle the clan for good. One way or another, this is the end.」

Genji confessed that the reason he hadn’t offered information about the family was that he wasn’t interested in them the first time they attacked. It was the one thing he didn’t tell Overwatch and did everything in his power to protect him for the reason of revenge. Back then, he was out for blood Hanzo’s specifically, and he wanted to be alone when he did it.  Hanzo didn’t fault him for it even in the position they were in currently. He would’ve done the same thing. Genji was right, the clan was defunct for years, it took a while to get back to the point to where they were a threat. Now that they had reunited, their bond as brothers stronger than before the incident it was time to finish business.

「Very well. We will go to the gardens out back. The same ones where you two trained.」 The brothers nodded and parted.  Hanzo lowered his bow, and Genji took his hands off of his blade and put the shuriken’s in his arm once more, unarming himself. They gestured for the family to go first before following them. Hanzo still held the arrow at the ready, holding it by his waist as he walked, the tip was aimed toward the ground, his hand more resting on the string than anything, but was ready to pull. Genji walked with his hands by his side, confident in his speed to retrieve his weapons in a moment’s notice.

Hanzo snuck a look at his brother. At that moment Hanzo was thankful that Genji was wearing the visor, obscuring his face. The minute changes in Genji’s posture suggested that the only thing he’d see in his brother’s eyes was murder. He turned back, his eyes matched it, but Genji, the way he was holding himself suggested that if Hanzo would allow it, he would use Dragonblade right there in the hallway.

The tension didn’t ease at all once they stepped outside, if anything it got worse as they stood facing one another, only moving to avoid random shrapnel falling from another courtyard from all of the other fighting happening that night.

_“I see ‘em,”_ Lúcio said as he was seen skating on one of the roofs. He waved at them before frowning. “ _Shit looks serious. We better get ready for the dragon show y’all.”_

_“Good luck Loves, we’re all rootin’ on ya!”_ Tracer cheered as both their grips tightened as Hanzo nodded, giving Genji permission to say one thing.

“Stay safe and keep your eyes on the enemy…” was all the ninja said, the voice barely audible to the archer standing near him.

The moon was full, illuminating the garden in what normally would be breath-takingly beautiful but at that moment everything was cold, still, waiting for someone to strike and neither side wanted to. A breeze was blowing the ribbons of Hanzo and Genji to the side. Their gazes like steel against those of their family. It was very much like a stand-off in one of McCree’s movies, only more elegant and less dusty. Genji and Hanzo stood on one side, the rest of the Shimada clan, an assortment of aunts, uncles, and cousins on the other, each with the weapon they used to summon their dragon with at the ready.

Then, an unsaid cue hit. A garbled mess of various Japanese shouts rang into the air at one and light of various colors radiated from the spot they were standing. A wave of energy made all the plants bow to the shockwave. The fight on the other side of the property would stop for a brief moment as 30 or so dragons all flew up into the sky, each representing a Shimada. A fierce wind ripped through air, clothing billowing from the force.

There was silence as the energy left the air.

Then, everything fell apart.

Hanzo lowered his bow to load another arrow, his hand halfway to his quiver before as it began.

Despite all of their training, cries were heard in their ears, their comrades, family all getting captured all at once. Something was happening, and they couldn’t see it. Could it be tied to the dragons? Cries all echoing the same panic that they were down and in the hands of the enemies. Jesse’s voice rang out above all others, telling them to leave.

Genji cursed as he turned toward the other courtyard and saw the remnants of a few dragons plowing through. They had a cousin that as a child the younger brother had teased a lot. They summoned dragons via seals on pages. They overlooked it. They had planted pages with his seal on them and when he called one, he called them all.

Hanzo stood there, his breath caught in the middle of their throat. His instincts told him to leave, his legs just wanted to carry him far away, and save himself. His heart was saying something completely different. His heart was telling him to instead run to Jesse and help him. His logic said he wasn’t going to get to Jesse McCree. There was still away to save him.

His stomach churned at the thought of what he had to do. McCree wasn’t going to be happy about it, and with the swell of tears in his throat, it was clear in his face he didn’t like this idea either. The archer took a few steps toward his brother. Putting one hand on his brother’s shoulder, he pulled the ribbon from his hair and gave it to Genji. “For Jesse,” he whispered as he turned back toward his family. Genji held Hanzo’s hand and pulled him back.

“He won’t let me do this Hanzo. You have to come back!” Genji said his voice still quiet but loud enough to get his point across. Hanzo looked at him with sad eyes.

“I know, but what other choice to we have? The pages are still there, if we fight they can just summon them again. I….I can’t let them die. I trust in Overwatch. I trust in our friends. I will be okay.”

Genji let his shoulders relax. He knew where they were going to take him, he knew what they were going to do. They weren’t leaving, and if they left the estate now, they would only have minimal injuries to worry about. If they left now, they could possibly get Hanzo back.

“We’ll be back tomorrow.”

“I would expect nothing less.”

“ _Y’all we’re kinda in a pickle, please tell me y’all are almost done with the family,”_ came Jesse’s voice over coms.

“Hanzo,” Genji called turning his com on so Jesse could hear. “The dragon becomes us and consumes our enemies.”

“As the dragons of the north and south stand strong.”

“ _What? Oh shit…”_

Hanzo walked to stand in front of his former family, putting his bow on the ground as he knelt down and bowed. 「Please release them and take me in their stead, 」Hanzo said closing his eyes as he heard Genji take a step forward before stopping. The dragons curled under his skin, hating the idea of captivity. 「Let the one who goes by Genji escort them to safety, in exchange for my life.」

_“Hanzo, don’t you fuckin’ do what I think you’re doin’. Remember what we said!”_ Jesse yelled in his ear immediately recognizing the sound of defeat in the archer’s voice. “ _Hanzo fuckin’ Shimada! Don’ make me get my ass shot tryin’ to get over there to-“_  

“I have no choice Jesse…. I….I can’t let them have you,” Hanzo whispered more curling into a ball than anything. “Please…go. I will be fine…”

“ _Bull fuckin’ shit honeybee,”_ McCree said his voice almost cracking. Genji disappeared from the garden and appeared by Jesse’s side. Somehow the term of endearment sounded more of a threat. “ _Ya done told me what kind of shit these fuckers pull. I ain’t gonna let them do this to ya!”_

“Release Overwatch,” Katsu said confidently his words heavily accented as they were heard in the room where their friends were. “We have the traitor.” He turned and started talking off as Hanzo was kicked into the ground by his cousins. 「Lock him in the basement and begin the treatment.」

Jesse pushed against Genji’s arms after he was released. The ninja threw him back on his ass, his hands clenched as he looked at Hanzo’s ribbon. He looked at him, his posture suggesting he was going to throw it at the cowboy, but to his shock the cyborg knelt down and tied it around McCree’s living wrist.

“We will get him back,” Genji promised quietly his voice so sharp it could cut steel. “Even if we have to work outside of Overwatch. I am not leaving my brother here, but right now we have to look out for our family.” Genji and McCree were gently escorted out of the castle by a mixture of their teammates and Shimada clan grunts.

The dragon rages.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I am not sure how I feel about this chapter? Like I know I could sit down and rewrite parts and make it better, but at the same time I like how it is because of how it flows in the full draft.


	3. Chapter 3

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A rescue on Hanzo, doesn't go as planned

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> CW: Scenes of torture. Major Character Death, violence. 
> 
> This is the chapter where everything goes to hell, enjoy.

The smell of burning flesh was all that Hanzo smelled as every muscle in his body tensed against the pain. His back arched as tears streamed down his face. He would do whatever it took for them to not hear a peep out of him. His teeth were bared, arms restrained, more of protection toward the men surrounding him burning his flesh.

Eventually, the white-hot pain subsided, and he was left to hang limply from the manacles that had him chained to the ceiling. Iron clanged against the stone floor as what was used to alter the brand on his right shoulder was thrown away from the man who was trying to get a reaction from the archer.

What used to be a clean brand of the Shimada sigil was now sloppy, messy. Something was carelessly pressed against him to wipe away the association. His flesh was bubbled up in some areas, and he was probably going to die of infection if he wasn’t going to leave anytime soon. Hanzo would admit that he thought of doing the same thing during his travels. He was always so inebriated that it probably wouldn’t hurt as much as it did right now. The first time, he was under anesthesia.

「You are no longer a Shimada Hanzo, you are below us. Now, you must pay for betraying the clan,」 The elder breathed into his ear. Hanzo locked his jaw and turned his head toward him. His hair stuck to his forehead from sweat as a dark chuckle escaped his lips.

「I may not be a Shimada, but I am not below you. I have had experiences that the clan would scoff at but are invaluable to me. You may have a crime empire, but I have something this clan never was; a family,」 Hanzo spat at him and rolled his head back.

There was a dark chuckle behind him as footsteps moved around the room.

「That family isn’t here Hanzo. They aren’t going to save you.」

_Crack!_

Muscles tensed again as a whip cracked against his back. The welt stinging against the humid air of the basement. Hair fell in front of Hanzo’s face as he closed his eyes and tried to regulate his breathing. It took all of his will power to keep his dragons from manifesting within the room. A thin crackle of electricity passed over his arm, his eyes glowing a dull blue as he locked eyes with his captor.

「They’ll be here.」

_Crack!_

\--

“What th’ fuck do ya mean we ain’t fuckin’ goin’ back for ‘em?” McCree demanded slamming his hands on the table and looked Winston straight in the eyes, challenging him. He wanted him to say once more that they were going to leave Hanzo, a reason to punch him in his jaw. “He’d do fancy fuckin’ ninja shit to get all our asses out whatever shit storm would be kickin’ our asses. We gotta get ‘em.” His voice was reverberating through the walls, there was little doubt that everyone in the hotel at that point knew that Overwatch was staying with them.

 No one was happy with the predicament with Hanzo being in the hands of his family which turned out to be exactly what the Shimada clan wanted to begin with. There were a few injuries among the group. Scratches were quickly bandaged, and exhaustion was the biggest threat to the group. Other than Winston’s calm assessment of the situation, and McCree’s loud colorful language, everyone was silent, looking away from the ninja cyborg who was isolated from the group, and still had his visor on.

Genji was leaning against a wall, his head slightly bowed, arms and ankles crossed as he listened to the two of them argue. Behind the visor, his eyes hadn’t changed from the murderous look he had back in the castle, and everyone felt it as well. He understood where Winston was coming from, he understood why the group couldn’t go in together. They messed up, they forgot how their own family worked, and that costed them. It was completely their fault and though if he were younger he would dwell on this mistake – Hanzo should would if the tables had been turned – Zenyatta had told him that simply letting it go and promising himself that he will do better next time was sometimes the best solution. No one was perfect, they focused so much on the grunts they completely overlooked the family. Next time they would do better. Next time was going to have to be soon though. He was going to have to do something that Hanzo would later scold him over.

Genji was going to go get his brother back that night. Whether it be hell or high water, as McCree said, Hanzo Shimada was going back to Gibraltar. He promised Hanzo, and he promised McCree. He knew what had to happen, he had to take back his brother, and his life once again. This time, the risks were so much higher. He was facing the family alone.

In Oldwatch, Jesse would go off many times whether on orders, or otherwise, would go off and take on mini missions on his own. Whether Genji would let Jesse join wasn’t going to be an issue, he was coming whether the ninja would let him or not. It wasn’t the first mission they had gone on without Overwatch’s resources and approval.

 “We don’t have the resources McCree. Hanzo is a smart man he can find a way to survive until we can afford to go out and break him out,” Winston insisted looking at the cowboy. His eyes showed how tired everyone was, how he didn’t want to say what he was. Jesse was right, Hanzo was a part of the team.

“No,” Genji said quietly not moving. Everyone turned toward him, the room grew silent. The ninja stood motionless, his shoulders and chest moving with his breathing was the only indication he was still there. “The family wants him dead. He has a week, perhaps two at most. They will torture him and once they know that he won’t give them the satisfaction of reacting, they _will_ get rid of him. If we are going to retrieve him, we need to act soon.”

“It isn’t feasible after the hits we have taken today,” Winston said, disappointment clear in his voice. “He knew his decision when he made it.”

Genji stood up straight and walked over to Winston and glared at him from behind the visor, a chill ran down the gorilla’s spine. The cyborg’s shoulders were drawn back, his hands being held slightly away from his body, making him look more intimidating. He slowly lowered his hands on the table and leaned forward menacingly. “Then Overwatch will not do it. Things like this were more Blackwatch’s job back before, why change it?” He turned toward McCree and gestured toward the door with his head before walking toward it. Lúcio and Hana moved to stand up. Genji simply looked at them and slowly turned around. “No. You two stay here. We are not going to put you in danger again. If I knew I could convince McCree to stay I would insist the same. McCree has experience in breaking people out of capture.” McCree nodded and pushed them down.

The two of them looked at one another, their expressions the same. They wanted to help. “We might need backup, then we’ll call y’all.” McCree assured. The two of them looked disappointed.

“We know you two won’t call, but okay,” Lucio said quietly.

“Bring him back,” Hana mumbled, looking down. McCree knelt and gave them Hanzo’s ribbon.

“We will.”

The cowboy then led the them to the room he and Hanzo were staying in, sitting on the bed, and leaning on his knees as he glared at the floor, his hands covering his face. “Fuckin’ dumbass. Why the fuck did ‘e get caught?” His shoulders started to shake, both because of his emotions of grief and his anger. He almost couldn’t stay still.

“He was protecting his family,” Genji said shaking his head, suddenly feeling very tired, his shoulders falling finally. He fell to the ground and rested his left elbow on his knee as he finally took the visor off as he leaned against the wall. He looked exhausted, worried, and like he was honestly about to cry. “He did it to me before…” he simply gestured toward his boy.

All of this time, the entire year they spent reuniting. He still loved his brother.

McCree nodded and pulled his hat down and pulled out a cigarillo, hiding his own tears that were threatening to spill. He only smoked during battle these days because it steadied his aim kept him calm, he needed calm. Genji moved and squeezed McCree’s shoulder and pressed his lips together. They were both hurting the same pain.

“My brother is strong. They won’t be able to break him. I promise.” McCree looked at him with an expression that dripped in worry as he turned away, grabbing the pillow Genji assumed to be Hanzo’s and hugged it, being mindful of the cigarillo. He said nothing to Genji, merely burring his face into the soft surface of the pillow to hide his pain.

“What’s the plan Genji?”

\---

Hanzo gasped as air filled his lungs, the splash of water heard just below him, the surface more than ready to pull him back in as pieces of his hair and water fell over his eyes, blinding him for the time being. A few coughs started passing through his system before he was submerged again, very little time to make sure he had an adequate breath to last long under the surface.

Majority of his hair was wrapped around someone else’s hand and they weren’t being gentle. This wasn’t the fond pulls and tugs that relayed complete ecstasy that he was used to from Jesse, this person was looking to drown him or at least come close. The hand was heavy as he was held under the water, his vision was starting to go black before he was pulled back up, coughing up water that had gotten into his lungs, and bracing himself for another dip.

「Had enough young one?」 asked his uncle. This one married into the family, no tattoo, no dragon. Not a magical one anyways, he voluntarily got a tattoo to match his husbands. He was still just as involved and in some ways, was more sadistic than anyone else. In everyone’s opinion he fit right into the crime family. The archer’s lungs ached, sucking in as much air as he could manage in the time he had. The question caused a small smile to spread across his face.

「Go suck a dick,」 Hanzo responded taking a deep breath as he was submerged again. If there was one thing he had learned from Jesse McCree and Hana he was proud to admit, it was that he had a new respect for trash talking. It had a certain finesse to it, and he had learned to have a certain respect for it. Instead of spending his time submerged wondering if he’d be pulled back up, he was finding something to say that Jesse would be proud of him for saying.

He gasped and smirked again once he was pulled up. The one putting him through this opened his mouth to ask again if he’d

 had enough to which Hanzo replied, 「In your dreams fucker. I grew up in this family, that in itself was worse than anything you can do. I killed Genji remember? My own brother, that is worse than anything your feeble mind can ever some up with.」 Despite hating the fact he brought up his worst regret, he lifted his chin before being submerged again. This time, his muscled convulsed as in addition to being drowned, he was also tased. His knees that were holding him up straightened, causing the lip of the tank to crush his windpipe in addition to everything.

He held in the gasp of pain that was aching to escape. He wouldn’t give them the satisfaction of seeing him in pain. Like every time before, he was pulled out of the water, able to breath enough to get some air into his lungs before he was tased again. His jaw locked as his muscles tensed and twitched involuntarily before the process was repeated.

He eventually was dragged back to his cell, dripping wet, and exhausted. He was dropped roughly; a concussion was going to be felt as he blacked out for a second. Not the worst thing they had done to him in the few hours he had been in their captivity. A proud smirk was on the archer’s face as he chuckled weakly, seeing the frustrated looked his captor’s face.

Point one for Hanzo.

\---

The rescue mission was simple, Genji was going to challenge the head of the clan to defend Hanzo’s honor as McCree got the archer out of the torture basement. So far, only one of those two things were happening as far as the other was concerned.

McCree was pinned around a corner; his gun being held up to the ceiling as he breathed. There were a few whistles as bullets flew over and past him. There was only one way that he was going to get to Hanzo at this rate, and he needed all the energy he could muster. The cowboy ran his hand over the blue serape he had wrapped around his shoulders. It would be worth it. He pulled his hat lower over his eyes as he chewed on the end of the cigar between his lips.

“ _It’s high noon…”_ McCree said stepping out and lined up his shots, emptying the cylinders of Peacekeeper, immediately reloading it and shooting another grunt in the head as he finally walked into the square room that was clearly in use.

A tub of water was in the center of the room, the floor around it still wet. A quick turn and a few shots rang out. There were too many of them, he needed to find Hanzo now and get out of there. He already managed to find Stormbow. That was a miracle in of itself. The arrows were replaceable, but the bow not so much. He looked at the trail of water lead to a room. McCree took out the rest of who was in the room and ran into the room, pulling a box to prop the door open knowing it probably wouldn’t have a way to be opened from the inside.

He kept an ear out toward the door as he turned and looked around the dark room. A small body laid crumbled on the floor, laying half-way in the fetal position. The person’s breaths were weak. The way his arms were laying over his face, suggested that his limbs were the heaviest thing in the world. He was exhausted, and probably wouldn’t even be able to sit up. His left foot was bent at an unnatural angle, clearly broken. His right was nowhere to be seen. McCree could see they were a fighter. In the dim light, he saw blood.

“Back already?” Hanzo’s voice was rough as he surprisingly pushed himself up, some hair falling in his face as he turned to look at Jesse. The show of strength was over as he as soon as they met eyes. “Jesse,” he breathed his shoulders falling. The cowboy caught him as he let his arms give out. “I was starting to think you weren’t going to come.” The tone of his voice was teasing, but it was hard to laugh with him in his condition. Instead, the cowboy simply hugged him close.

“I’d say I’d always be there for ya sweetheart.” The cowboy reached up and activated an ear piece he had. “Genji we got him.”

_“Good. Get out of here!”_ Genji responded urgently, clearly in the middle of a fight. McCree stood up with Hanzo, the archer was gripping onto his serape tightly, coughing. There was a slight gurgle in his breaths, and he was cold to the touch.

“Come-on let’s get ya outta here,” McCree said quietly. Hanzo whimpered and curled into his chest. “Darlin’ I can’t carry ya, I need a shootin’ arm.” Hanzo grumbled and put his broken left leg down.

Jesse started walking with him out of the room, Peacemaker in his hand. Slow and steady was the name of the game despite the fact that Genji wordlessly told them to hurry. Hanzo was worse for wear. The cowboy kept muttering reassurance to the archer as they moved.

They were quickly pinned down again. McCree growled as he shot toward the grunts, running out of bullets. Hanzo raised his arm and placed it over his on the gun. McCree understood what he was going with the action. This wasn’t the first time that this has happened.

“Do it,” Hanzo whispered weakly.

The cowboy shot, reciting the familiar Japanese phrase. “Ryuu ga waga teki wo kurau!” The cowboy yelled. The tattoo sparked to life, the dragons using McCree’s energy to be summoned. “Shit…that’s draining,” McCree whispered once they had passed, taking a moment to regain his breath. He pulled Hanzo up a little higher before they started stumbling again.

\---

Rain was falling, light thunder was heard in the distance. The lightning lit up the sky toward the horizon every now again. Water was streaming down Genji’s body as he was sliding against the ground, his sword swinging outward to regain his balance. He was more than waterproof, but this battle was wearing on him. He had gotten clipped with a dragon earlier in the battle, and his speed enhancers were shot.

Hanzo was going to be safe, that’s all that mattered. All he had to do was make sure that they got off the property then he could run. The sword was brought to the side of his face, his eyes narrowed behind the visor. He was going to survive. He was determined to get through this. He had been through too much to let this be his end.

Charging forward, the other sword met Genji’s _Ryu-Ichimonji._ He turned and moved to kick his cousin’s feet, meeting air as they danced around each other’s weapon. It appeared to be planned, like it was a stage show rather than a true battle between two highly trained assassins. Without the enhancements, they were basically a fair match.

Genji was nimbler and though his actual attacks were technically more advanced, showy, and quite possibly something the other, more sheltered leader had never seen, he knew that the family had spent years conditioning the younger to not be impressed, but instead look through the attacks and read what his opponent is going to do before he does it.

McCree had called him letting him know about Hanzo’s condition. He wasn’t surprised in the slightest that Hanzo was unable to move, and that he was barely able to move forward through the property. He knew what happened in the basement; the fact Hanzo was awake was a testament on the archer’s strength. They were in the homestretch, and though there should be a sense of relief at this news, there wasn’t.

Genji had a bad feeling in the pit of his stomach as he continued dancing around the blade swinging toward him. His face was set in a scowl under his visor, not liking the churning in his stomach at all. This feeling wasn’t new for him, he felt this exact feeling once before. The conditions around him, the tunnel like focus he had toward his cousin was the same focus he had toward Hanzo ten years ago. His dragon churned under his skin, completely restless, wanting to be released, not for attacking but for defense. His entire body was telling him to run. Unlike last time however, there was a sense of finality to his actions. This was the end. Someone wasn’t leaving this fight.

He was determined to make sure that it wasn’t him.

The ninja tripped, slipping against the mud. He gritted his teeth and held his sword up. His arms screamed at the force required to block the downward swing aimed for his head. He kicked the man away from him, jumping to his feet and swung forward, causing his opponent to jump back and gave him some space. There was the sound of a few hisses as the suit circulated some new air into it.

Without physically calling the dragon forward, Genji took a step forward and twirled his sword with a flick of his wrist. Effortlessly, the dragon spouted from the tip of his blade, a testament to their bond. He turned his head toward the dragon as he let out a low growl, slightly dipped his head in a silent conversation. Without his calling words, Genji swung toward the Shimada, the dragon using the momentum of the blade to charge the strike. It was met with the upward stroke of his cousin’s light orange dragon, the ninja appearing as the tail gave him enough room to squeeze under and attempt to land a hit on the other’s torso.

Another clang rang out into the storm matching up perfectly with a clap of thunder, a flash of lightening lighting up behind them. Any onlookers only saw their silhouettes, Genji being identified by the green lights on his suit.

Genji knew full well the entire family at this point was watching their fight. There were whispers and mutterings all around him, and he was forcing them out. He couldn’t afford to pay attention to this. Not until he knew Hanzo was out.

He was tossed back again, his feet sliding against the ground. Both men were breathing heavily as they stood, sword protecting their torso in perfect form. Shadows were casted as lightning struck nearby, the storm picking up momentum.

The two circled each other in the courtyard. The younger swung his sword a few times, shaking his hands to remind himself to relax his grip. There was no need to be white knuckled, it will only cause the blade to fly out, firm but relaxed.

「Have you had enough?」 The younger called out. Genji simply shook his head.

「Not until I have avenged my brother,」 He responded smoothly. 「I want to bring him home, and I know if I beat you, that can be arranged.」

「Then let’s see who is the better swordsman.」 They both stopped and held their sword ready. The man directly across from him smaller, and inexperienced, but like him was going to fight until his body gave out. He waited too long to gain the power he now had and he wasn’t about to give it up.

 They both jumped toward one another, both had their weapon raised. The family saw nothing as both figures were lost into the darkness, lit up only when a close strike of lightning lit up the background followed immediately with a loud clap of thunder.

In the brief flash of light, two figures were seen flanking Genji, the ninja’s eyes widening as he couldn’t stop, there was only one way for him to go: down. His heart stopped as he saw two flashes of steel as he stopped at the height of his jump.

His breath caught as he felt the cold steel pass through his body at two different points. His cousin was fighting dirty. Very dishonorable. He plummeted like a rock to the ground, feeling bone and robotic components snap as he landed. A struggled breath left his lungs as a third sword painfully and slowly was inserted through his chest from behind. 「Y-you cheated. What happened to honor?!」Genji whispered turning his head slowly, giving his family on last hated glance while he could.

「You let it happen Genji,」 his cousin retorted as the rest of the family stepped out, all aiming their weapons at the injured ninja. 「Now, let’s kill this imposter. 」

\--

Hanzo’s eyes widened as the figure he recognized as Genji fell to the ground, not moving to get back up. He forced McCree to stop. McCree tried to argue, but Hanzo was already gone both emotionally, and physically. He tore away from the man supporting him, weakly taking a step before falling to the mud below, his arm outstretched toward his brother. His voice unheard to his own ears but everyone else heard a pained cry out for Genji. The man’s voice cracked, his vocal cords straining from the volume, and emotion behind it. It echoed against the walls, even the sounds of the rain pouring from the sky was now silent as half of Hanzo’s face was covered in the ink-like blanket that was his wet hair.

A stirring was felt in his stomach reaching up and flowed through his left arm, they were awake. They were awake and furious. They wanted blood. As his hand stretched out toward Genji as his other clutched the dirt under him, a glow started at his tattoo, traveling up the arm spread to his eyes. Without a weapon to manifest off of, the dragons shot forward. Using nothing but the pure emotions from Hanzo, they formed and flew forward, the most powerful than anyone had ever seen. The light radiating off of the spirits lit the entire courtyard, Jesse had to lift his arm to shield his eyes.

The Shimada family could only stand there as they were decimated by the dragons, leaving no trace, or chance for them to rebuttal against Hanzo’s pure emotion that the dragons seemed to feed off of. The archer simply continued forward, clawing his way forward toward his brother, not caring that what little of his energy had just been used up and he could pass out at any moment.

He fell face first in front of Genji in a puddle. His body hurt, every inch of muscle was protesting as he forced himself up, to look Genji over. He felt nothing. The pain he was ignoring was now a wave of numbness as he raised a shaking hand before gently pulling Genji into his lap, burring his face in his brother’s bloodied shoulder, his entire body shaking as tears mixed in with the rain water streaming down his face and down his back.

Jesse’s eyes were wide after he lowered his arms to look at what was happening, the cigar he kept in his mouth fell as the sobbing cries of the Japanese man, begging desperately for his brother to wake up was the only thing he heard. He watched in complete shock as Hanzo lightly shook Genji, begging him to not leave him again.

At some point Jesse came back to his senses and pulled out his phone. “Uh..Ang…we’re back at the Shimada’s ‘nd…we’re gonna need you down here, asap,” he said slowly before he moved to pull both brothers into his lap, lightly rubbing Hanzo’s back.

A viscous mixture of blood and oil soaked through both Hanzo’s _kyodo-gi_ and McCree’s jeans as the elder brother clung to his dying one. The shaking noted earlier had only gotten worse as he fumbled with the visor on the younger brother’s face. With McCree’s help, he managed to get it off, practically throwing it off to the side. The entire time the desperate begging slipped into incoherent Japanese to the cowboy, but he assumed it was along the sentiments of “It’s okay, we’ll fix this. Just stay with me.”

“Hanzo. _Aniki,_ ” Genji choked out, his brother’s incoherent Japanese mumblings stopping abruptly as he looked down at his brother. His eyes were wide as his full attention was focused on the dying man in front of them. Genji lifted his arm and Hanzo, held his hand. A weak smile spread across the ninja’s face as he began to speak. “ _Anata ga shiawase ni narimasu yakusoku._ ” There was a pause before he added. “For me.”

“ _Hai. Anata no suzume-kun no tame.”_ He responded using Genji’s old nickname from their childhood as the lights on Genji’s suit slowly dimming. The younger Shimada chuckled lightly at the nickname before weakly reaching out and putting his hand on Hanzo’s chest. Hanzo put his hand over his brothers as a series of “no’s” started spilling from his mouth.

The smile stayed as tears built up around the ninja’s face. A light squeeze was felt around Hanzo’s hand. “ _Aniki._ _Ryūjin wa watashitachi ni nari, teki o ubau…”_

_“Kita to minami no ryū ga tsuyoku tatsu kagiri,”_ Hanzo finished, clutching his brother’s hand to his chest. Genji smiled, his eyes closing as if he was about to start giggling, a silent way of saying that he was okay. At first Hanzo’s response was a small twitch, then it was a full nod as he pulled Genji closer, crying into his chest as Jesse could only sit there and give the archer gentle tender touches, not understanding what was said, but clearly understanding what was happening.  

Genji was gone.

The crying got worse. The caring words quickly turned into ones that were begging the man to wake up. English was lost, the Japanese wasn’t intelligible. Grief was slowly turning the already weakened man into a crumbled mess, his voice was probably going to be gone before Angela would make it from their hotel. He was also most definitely going to be getting sick from all that had happened.

As the cries started to calm down, and exhaustion started to take over, the body of Genji Shimada lit up. Unfortunately, the suit wasn’t turning on to reveal this was an elaborate prank. It was exactly like Hanzo’s tattoo was with the presence of the dragon, wispy and ethereal.  Hanzo pause and pushed himself up, his eyes widening as the glow turned into a beam of light coming from the ninja’s chest shooting straight into the sky.

“Genji…” Hanzo breathed as McCree moved back slightly. Both men looked up, Hanzo’s lips slightly parted like he wanted to say more, but he couldn’t make the words leave his mouth. Shock kept the words from spilling out, leaving the broken archer just sitting there dumbfounded at what was about to happen.

 “Uh…partner, what’s happenin?” McCree asked looking up as the light eventually formed the transparent green dragon that McCree was somewhat familiar with. Hanzo bowed his head and greeted the being, listening to its small gruffs and growls before answering McCree.

“Genji has…requested his dragon to protect me. A final farewell,” Hanzo mumbled before saying something more to the dragon. There was a gesture toward McCree by the beast. Hanzo raised his left arm up and some semblance of the Hanzo Jesse knew, smooth and confident, returned as he bowed his head in warning. The cowboy tipped his hat politely at the dragon, not knowing exactly what was going on but had a pretty good guess. He wasn’t exactly welcomed to this private matter, but Hanzo needed him so he wasn’t moving.  

It didn’t take long for the conversation between Hanzo and the dragon to break the façade the archer was putting on. After Hanzo made it clear Jesse was no threat, the sadness returned to the archer. He reached down, stroking Genji’s face as he spoke, 「I do not deserve this final act of kindness from him.」 The dragon growled, it was nonthreatening, but it made its point very clear. The dragon, agreeing with Hanzo, trusted Genji. Though Hanzo was talented in the fact he had two dragons, it was Genji that had the closest bond with his dragon. This is why when summoned the dragon moved with the blade, and not using the blade as a means to be shot off of.

The dragon looked at the black and green blade that used to belong to Genji. The blade lifted off the ground as Hanzo instinctively held out his hands. The dragon gently put the blade in the last Shimada’s hands. This made the message very clear, he was going to grant Genji this last request whether Hanzo would accept it or not.

「I…I can’t. This sword was for him only,」Hanzo said to the dragon his voice barely heard to the cowboy behind him. The voice that was normally strong and even when nothing else was, was wavering. The dragon was only to be summoned by use of Genji’s _Ryu-Ichimonji,_ a sword only Genji had even touched. Again there was a huff from the dragon, leaving the archer to bow his head out of respect. 「I understand. By requesting you follow me, he gave me _Ryu-Ichimonji._ 」There was a pause as Hanzo turned the blade over in his hands. He looked up, his eyes showing a little resolve behind all of the pain as he gave a single nod. 「I will be your new vessel. Genji has promised you would be taken care of. I refuse to let my brother’s dying wish to be denied out of my own stubbornness.」

Hanzo’s tattoo glowed as his two dragons flowed off of the arm and joined Genji’s one. The three dragons looked at one another and suddenly flew up into the clouds. “Get back,” Hanzo said bracing himself with a sniffle as all three flew down and were absorbed into his body.

The archer started glowing with the essence of the dragons. Blue and green lights sprouted from his fingers, his tattoo lit up as his eyes were glowing. Green lightning spread across his body settling around his abdomen around his heart, growing brighter, leaving red lines across his skin. As the lights died down as he slumped forward, passing out on top of his dead brother as Angela walked up.

“Hanzo?” McCree called, the last thing the archer heard before he was completely gone.

\---

**_You have a lot to learn before you are ready to wield me._ **

A light beep was the first thing Hanzo registered, the cool air of the clinic was the second. He groaned and slowly opened his eyes. His entire body was buzzing, every muscle was sore as he started moving, groaning.

“Hey,” a gentle voice said. “Ya back with us?” Hanzo turned and saw McCree looking at him, dark circles under his eyes. He hadn’t slept in a few days.

“Yes.” He hissed as he put his hand over his chest, looking at his chest. Angry red lines forming a dragon spanned his chest. He closed his eyes and felt the extra presence of the third dragon. “Genji…” he whispered.

Jesse’s shoulders fell and he reached for Hanzo’s hand, squeezing it. “There was nothin’ we coulda done. He’s….dead. forreal this time.” Hanzo stiffened as the night’s events replayed in his mind.

He couldn’t be gone.

The carrot boy of Hanamura could not be dead. The bother that had so many party stories, was not dead. He could spend hours just rattling them out with the widest smile on his face. “No regrets,” he’d say with a light shake of the head, “just good times.” The man who dealt with all of the baggage and ornery-ness that came with being Hanzo’s brother in stride and was typically the first person who made jokes about it. Who could read the stoic man and know just how to cheer him up when he was having a bad day. Who was the first one to decide to put aside what happened and told his brother that he would be willing to forgive him if he had joined Overwatch. The one who helped him acclimate to the new group of people; who helped him open up to the man he loved. The man who could talk his way out of most situations casually and if that didn’t work then he’d draw his weapon and become deadly to the point it only took one before everyone was throwing information at his feet. The man who looked like he was dancing with his sword rather than using it to kill. The man who cared about his sword like it was his child. The one who’s laughter lit up the room where he was in, who played innocent pranks to brighten people’s day. Who was easy to talk to and was more than happy to simply sit around and listen to people’s problems and then joke with them to help them feel better. He was the one who everyone knew they could count on, who would keep every promise and was only serious when he had to.

_Who believed in Hanzo Shimada when no one else did._

He couldn’t be gone.

“Hanzo?” came Angela’s voice through his racing thoughts. He felt a gentle hand, Jesse’s caressing his cheek. He was crying. He blinked a few times and wiped his own tears.

“Yes?” he asked quietly. Angela moved to sit at the foot of his bed, putting her hands in her lap.

“Your leg is with Torbjörn. You have some markings along your torso that doesn’t seem to be healing, and a minor case of pneumonia. As for Genji…We’re waiting for what you would like to do.”

“It’s how this dragon will be sealed, how it has marked my body as its home. I need to get the _horimono_ before we leave for Gibraltar. A traditional tattoo, we use to seal the dragons. As for Genji….” He paused. “A funeral, it is what he would want.” Angela nodded and gently squeezed his shoulder before leaving, the archer simply studied his lap sadly.

“Han?” He slightly turned toward Jesse. “Before we left ya castle. I got this. Didn’ feel right leavin’ it after it floated ‘nd shit.” Hanzo gently held Genji’s katana, _Ryu-Ichimonji_ and pulled out the blade from it’s sheath, studying the black and green blade as if looking at it for the first time before putting it back, closing his eyes and looking away, from the blade that rested on his lap. “It is going to be weird thinking of _Ryu_ - _Ichimonji_ as my own... It will forever be Genji’s weapon.”

An emptiness he had only known once before came over him.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> **Translations:**  
>  Aniki = Informal. Means brother and can be used as slang for fellow members in a gang  
> Anata ga shiawase ni narimasu yakusoku = “Promise you will be happy.”  
> Hai. Anata no suzume-kun no tame. = “Yes. For you Sparrow.”  
> Ryūjin wa watashitachi ni nari, teki o ubau. Kita to minami no ryū ga tsuyoku tatsu kagiri. = The dragon becomes us and consumes our enemies as long as the dragons of the North and South stand strong. 
> 
>  
> 
>  
> 
> Okay, sorry this took a little longer, I couldn't get the death scene right, and even not I am not 100% happy with it, but I wanted to come out with something before I go on Vacation most of next week. There is a conclusion to this, and unfortunately, I won't be coming out with it until the week after McHanzo week. 
> 
>  
> 
> I hope you enjoyed, you can message me of all of your feels if you want. I don't mind.


	4. Chapter 4

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Hanzo coping with his brother's death and finally able to say that he was happy.

If Hanzo thought the first time thinking he had lost Genji was hard, the second time was harder. Unlike the first time, he saw the body he watched it be laid to rest with all of his friends -their friends – surrounding him giving their condolences toward him. A numbness that he was slowly becoming accustomed to living without was back. Life had little meaning to him, with the team understandably insisting he took a few months off to come to terms with his loss, the days seemed to bleed from one day to the other without any real meaning to them.

There were multiple nights where Hanzo was simply picking at the food that Jesse had gotten him when he would weakly push it away and lay on his arms and his shoulders were soundlessly start shaking in the middle of dinner. No one said anything, no one stared, they simply continued on like Hanzo was okay. This wasn’t because they were insensitive, they hated seeing the proud man like that. They simply knew acknowledging it would only serve to make it worse. They showed they cared by each checking up on him at various points in the day. Jesse would always go behind everyone and thank them for caring about Hanzo, understanding more than anyone that he wasn’t always the easiest person to work with.

McCree was holding up as good as one could expect from losing his best friend and watching his boyfriend look at the gourd around his waist at various points of the day in a silent inner debate. He knew that the water he kept in it was gone. He knew that if he were to take it from Hanzo and take a drink the sweet burn of sake would travel down his throat. There were times where he wanted to grab a bottle of bourbon and sit on Genji’s floor with Hanzo and drink in front of the small memorial that they had made in his room until they both forgot the pain.

He didn’t.

When Hanzo did, he was patient with the drunk man and helped him get fluids that weren’t alcohol in his system before he passed out. He helped keep the _kydo-gi_ wrapped securely on the archer’s chest as he had basically thrown himself into Jesse’s arms with nothing but pain and lust in his eyes. He waited until Hanzo was asleep before he opened the window, sat on the sill and simply watch the moon as he smoked cigarillo after cigarillo, pausing only to cry. The tobacco was between his lips a lot more, and for once Angela simply let him. She understood, they were all coping. The old habit returning was a comfort for McCree.

There was a night where Hanzo woke up in the middle of the night and he caught McCree hugging his knees and crying. The archer simply got up and moved to sit with him, holding him as he let the cowboy get his emotions out, his older brother instincts kicking in. “It’s alright to cry with me Jesse,” He had said gently. “I know…I’m coping in a more exorbitant manner, but you are picking up old habits as well.” There was a nod toward the ashes around the cowboy. “You don’t have to be strong for me, we can cry and miss Genji together.” Jesse only hugged Hanzo tightly.

“Ain’t right ya know?” he said his voice breaking three times during that short sentence. “He was too good for what happened. Shoulda been one o’ us. We’re the sinners here.”

“I know. But, I am holding you to the same promise Genji is holding me to.”

“W’as that?”

“I promised that I would be happy.”

After that, Hanzo decided that he was going to make good on his promise. Unfortunately for him, that meant he had to leave Gibraltar for a time, he needed to find the peace his brother had eventually found for himself if he was to understand his brother’s dragon. The team was understandably sad to see the archer go, but they all understood that it was something he had to do.

The hardest part was leaving Jesse. There was nothing more the archer wanted to do than to bring Jesse to Nepal with him to find the same monk that helped his brother. Unfortunately, when he brought the idea to Jesse, the cowboy merely gave him a sad smile and put his hand on the Shimada’s heart where the new tattoo was and told him that he needed to do this by himself. He promised he would be waiting on him, and that they would write every night to one another. Jesse let Hanzo take his serape, and Hanzo left his favorite golden ribbon behind.

Zenyatta was nothing Hanzo expected. He knew immediately who Hanzo was once he made it to the monastery, and didn’t seem shocked to see him there. What he was shocked, was to hear that hid old student had passed away protecting his only family. Still, despite his sorrow, Zenyatta taught Hanzo how to love himself again. He helped the archer let go of the past, and instead of dwelling on it, use it to better himself. He spoke words of wisdom that helped strengthen the archer’s spirit and resolve. Hanzo found out more about himself in Nepal than he did in all of his years beforehand. He learned that he hated being strict, that being relaxed was a better way to live his life. He learned that, he rather enjoyed simply being outside and letting sunlight hit his face. He loved gardening, and climbing trees for enjoyment rather than to get a better look-out position.

Much like with Genji, Zenyatta was proud to see Hanzo come to be at peace with himself. He was there when Hanzo managed to summon Genji’s dragon and ask for his assistance formally to help protect the family he had gained and he accepted, giving the tattoo life. It was then, he returned to Gibraltar with a new saying ringing through his head: ryūjin no ken wa teki o ubau.

Upon his return, Hanzo was found in the training room. His bow was still in his room which is why it took McCree an entire hour to find him. The archer was sitting on his in the middle of the room, his gaze hard on the sword. A slow inhale was heard as he bowed his head, closing his eyes. A black ribbon was in his hair instead of the normal gold, and his hands were twitching.

Jesse did nothing but move to the observation deck, wanting to be close in case Hanzo would need him, the archer did twitch toward his direction when his spurs clinked with his heavy footsteps, but he didn’t say anything. Eventually the archer leaned forward and pushed to his feet, walking over to the sword and lifted it up, taking another deep breath.

_Training Sequence Activated._

He was nowhere as graceful as Genji was. He appeared exactly what he was, knowledgeable but very rusty due to not using the skills. Even from where Jesse was he could see things wrong with Hanzo’s form, where and how much his foot placement was off, and that his grip on the sword seemed more forced than natural. Still, he managed to take out the bots with only small scratching adorning his body.

It was short, but it was a step.

Six months after Genji had died Hanzo was finally put on a mission. Understandably he was nervous. The pain of losing his brother had faded. He was training regularly, the sword in the morning and the bow in the evening. It wasn’t going to be the same. He was going to have to fill both roles he and his brother had while fighting, and though he didn’t doubt himself as a sniper character, he did doubt himself with the sword.

“Ya are gonna do great darlin’,” McCree assured kissing the archer’s cheek as Hanzo secured the katana in the middle of his back. “I’ve seen ya train, ain’t no one gonna get to you or anyone else.”

“I am unsure,” Hanzo muttered. “When I am needed close we’re going to lose our eyes, even if I do shoot one of my sonic arrows.”

“We’ll be okay. Jus’ do ya best. Okay?” Hanzo nodded. He could do that.

The mission went fine, as did the next 20. On his 21st mission, he woke up on the transport with Jesse’s serape wrapped around him in a daze. He remembered being surrounded with only one resort. He drew the sword and summoned the dragon for the first time. Apparently, he was going to have to get his body acclimated to the energy that the green dragon had like he had when he started summoning his two.

Soon, even that hiccup was overcome with resilience and he was even able to summon all three with the phrase he learned while leaving Nepal. Unfortunately, it came with its own drawbacks, no matter how hard he trained, the energy required of him to do so, was too much and he passed out every time. It was only used for grave emergencies, which fortunately didn’t happen often.

Two years after his brother’s demise, Jesse asked Hanzo to marry him. The answer came without hesitation and plans for a wedding were quickly underway. Their wedding day was both joyful and sad. Both men were saddened by the fact that the best man speech, though was done beautifully by Lúcio, wasn’t done by Genji. They both agreed that the cyborg had one in the works the day they had confided in him their feelings for one another. They knew that it would’ve been a mixture of teasing and seriousness. He’d talk about how happy Hanzo was with Jesse, and how Jesse was calmer with Hanzo around. How they complimented one another like no one else could. How he was proud to welcome Jesse Shimada-McCree into the family.

They then continued to fight for Overwatch until they were simply tired of the life. They settled down back in Japan, not too far from the old Shimada estate, but it was a small house that fit their needs. It had a high roof, a nice garden, and plenty of space for the two of them to keep their abilities sharp should they ever need them.

It was a restless night, the decade anniversary of Genji’s death when Hanzo finally feel completely at peace with his brother’s second death. He was standing out on the roof of their house, overlooking the city below him, wind blowing through his hair.

He was simply reflecting on his life, something Zenyatta had taught him was never a bad thing and instead should be encouraged. It was a healthy way of keeping himself grounded on what was happening and what he wanted to happen. It might’ve been the date, he wasn’t sure, but there was one question passing through his head relentlessly:

_Was he happy?_   

Yes.

He, Hanzo Shimada-McCree was happy. He had a loving husband, a team behind him that trusted him to watch their back, he’d made a difference in the world in quelling the Second Omnic War, and countless other undercover missions. He had repaid his debt to society, both he and Jesse had stopped calling one another sinners, it simply didn’t fit anymore.

Genji would be proud.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Translations:   
> ryūjin no ken wa teki o ubau – The Dragon sword consumes my enemies. 
> 
> Sorry it took forever to update this! I ended up adopting a kitten and had to make sure that she was settling in okay, and then mental health tanked a little bit, and then I had to get my laptop repaired. It's just been a summer. So, here you guys go. I am currently working on another story with McHanzo in it, a role reversal au thing. It's weird and I really should plan it out, but eh. 
> 
> I am also considering continuing the longer-more detailed version of this story, so if you guys want it let me know and I will put it higher on my priorities, otherwise I will get to it when I get to it. 
> 
> Thank you guys so much for reading!

**Author's Note:**

> As for other plans for this, I originally was going to post this as a one-shot, and then supplement it with chapters going into more detail in certain scenes that either I wanted to write or that y'all wanted to see, and that's still an option so if you want to see something in more detailed let me know. I'll turn this into a series. 
> 
> You can find me on my [Tumblr](http://www.caliginous-confused.tumblr.com) or my [Twitter](http://twitter.com/CaliginousZack) for more of my sheannigans.


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